OSR: WWE Royal Rumble 1993 Review

OSR: WWE Royal Rumble 1993 Review

For the next edition of the Old School Review, we shall be going to a time which could arguably be seen as the start of The New Generation, as WWE had just launched Monday Night RAW but also the last PPV appearance of Ric Flair in the WWE for 9 years, but also the debut of one of the worst characters in WWE history, Giant Gonzalez. So, if you haven’t worked it out already, here is the next edition of the OSR, featuring the Royal Rumble 1993 Review, enjoy!

We go straight to the arena without an opening package, and go straight to our announcers for the evening Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan who hype the various matches which will be happening this evening, including the main Rumble match, before we soon head down to the ring for the first match of the evening.

The Steiner Brothers vs. The Beverly Brothers

The Beverly Brothers make their way to the ring first in a very cocky manner, before The Steiner’s make their way to the ring to laughable music, but how different does Scott look compared to now, he is virtually unrecognizable. Scott starts off the match with one of the Beverly’s (not sure which, one minus mustache). Now, after a quick internet search, the one minus the mustache is Beau. Eventually, Rick and Blake are tagged in, with Blake being dominant with a variety of moves, despite some small comeback attempts by Rick, who soon tags in Scott. Beau and Blake display some great tag team wrestling, with frequent tags in and out to keep one another fresh but also display some simple but great and effective wrestling holds. Rick is eventually tagged back in and becomes the dominant force over the Beverly’s with a series of power moves to keep them grounded. The Steiners are eventually successful in winning the match following a frankensteiner from Scott on Blake. An okay opening match, nothing special though to be honest.

Gorilla and Bobby briefly talk about the match before we go to an opening promo for the match, which shows the breakdown of the friendship between the two on The Barber Shop, before showing Jannetty’s return as Michaels rose as a single player. Jannetty is then seen nailing Sensational Sherri with the mirror after Michaels pills her in front of him before we return to the arena, where Sherri makes her way to the ring before Jannetty then makes his way to the ring, to a good reaction. He is then followed by Michaels making his way to the ring, with the very early rendition of “Sexy Boy” as his theme, as sang by Sherri. Jannetty is dominant over Michaels in the early moments, with him being taken out of the rings various times. Michaels is able to gain the momentum in the match and remains dominant over Jannetty for some time, until he misses a turnbuckle spot which allows Jannetty to mount a comeback. As Michaels is suplexed to the outside, Sherri feigns concern for Shawn and instead nails him show her allegiance to Jannetty. She eventually makes her way into the ring to nail Shawn with her heel, but inadvertently nails Jannetty, allowing Michaels to nail him with a superkick to pick up the win in an average match as Sherri flees backstage.

Match Rating: 2.0 out of 5.0 Stars

We are shown a distraught Sherri backstage with Gene Okerlund being hysterical before she is confronted by Michaels who is then quickly taken down by Jannetty as backstage officials attempt to separate them, at which point we return to Gorilla and Bobby who argue over what has just happened between the two, great chemistry shared between the two before we head to the ring.

Bam Bam Bigelow vs. The Big Boss Man

Bam Bam makes his way to the ring first to a nothing reaction, before The Boss Man (who again, looks massive) makes his way to the ring to a timid reaction. Bam Bam initially displays his athletic ability over Boss Man and is able to ground him very quickly. Bam Bam is able to remain very dominant over Boss Man in this match, who is able to mount a couple of comeback attempts but is ultimately overpowered by Bam Bam, who eventually picks up the win following a diving headbutt from the top rope in a very mediocre match which is instantly forgettable.

Match Rating: 0.5 out of 5.0 Stars

WWE Championship: Bret Hart (c) vs. Razor Ramon

We are firstly shown a clip of Razor attacking Owen Hart a few weeks earlier, before we return to Gorilla and Heenan who talk about his cockiness which is highlighted by an interview with Razor by Raymond Rougeau. We then head backstage to Gene Okerlund talking to Bret Hart, who says he is going out there to defend his families honour before making his way to the ring to a great reaction. Bret is initially dominant in the early moments of the match, and begins to work the legs of Razor to keep him down, until Razor is able to use his strength advantage to keep Bret down with a series of moves which show his ring savvy and technical capability. Bret is able to mount a comeback, and is able to display a level of viciousness towards Razor with a series of headbutts. Both men are moving around the ring really nicely, with each other selling the others moves really well, until Bret is able to pick up the win when Razor taps out to the sharpshooter in a very good and enjoyable match. Showcasing what Scott Hall was capable of in his early days but how great Bret was with the right opponent.

Match Rating: 3.5 out of 5.0 Stars

Bobby Heenan has now left the announce booth and made his way down to the arena floor to introduce his new protege, Lex Luger (with a gimmick name I am not even going to attempt to spell wrong). Lex then poses in front of a few mirrors, as Heenan promotes him to the audience. Lex’s character her is exceptionally cocky and almost infatuated with his looks but this segment is lasting much longer than it needs to because, frankly, I am bored now. Anyhow, Heenan gets him to talk about Mr. Perfect, but also how he is incredible and how he will be an exceptionally dominant force in the WWE. He eventually disappears behind a curtain, as we are then introduced to Caesar and Cleopatra in a promotional skit for WrestleMania IX at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, but this seems frankly ridiculous but embarrassingly bad. Caesar then goes on to proclaim about WrestleMania and Caesars Palace, and how everyone is invited. After an embarrassingly bad segment, we go back to Gorilla and Heenan, the first of which talks about the Rumble match rules whilst Heenan talks about Luger.